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Ghost Canyon

'The Evil Dead: 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray + Digital'
(Bruce Campbell, Richard DeManincor, et al / 4K Ultra HD + Blu ray + Digital / R / (1981) 2018 / Lionsgate Films)

Overview: Five friends travel to a cabin in the woods, where they unknowingly release flesh-possessing demons.

Now, for the first time, you can experience the ferocious ingenuity, relentless shocks, and gore-gushing havoc of the original Sam Raimi masterpiece in 4K!

4K Ultra HD Verdict: Lionsgate Films continues to expand their 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray catalog offerings this October with the release of the widely-beloved, camp horror classic, cinematic gem, 'The Evil Dead' in the new 4K home video format on October 9th, 2018.

For my money, this 'The Evil Dead: 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital' combo pack's sharpness takes a fairly large step forward from others in their 4K Ultra HD catalog and even comes with HDR (High Dynamic Range) for the complete 4K Ultra HD experience, of course.

So, what we have is 'The Evil Dead' presented to us as a two-disc combo pack with a sheet for a Digital HD Copy. Other stand out points you should know are: Codec: HEVC / H.265, Resolution: Native 4K (2160p), HDR: Dolby Vision + HDR10, Aspect ratio: 1.33:1, and Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1.

Featuring Dolby Vision and HDR10 for brighter, deeper, and way more lifelike colors, as with most all 4K UHD's, everything that we watch features these qualities - but somehow, this film gloriously shines within them all.

Noticeably crisper with the overall clarity receiving an obvious boost here on this release, what's more is that it's enjoyably noticeable. For as well as some new nuances to the somewhat drab palette courtesy of Dolby Vision we also get to witness sudden bright pops of color; like in the cabin action/horror scenes as the book comes to life and suddenly (and inside the dark rooms of the dimly lit cabin) the friends are "hunted"! It just all comes more vividly to life now, which is amazing to see, in truth.

Indeed, the picture enjoys the fruits of the added resolution in terms of bringing out the aforementioned extremely fine facial and some of the yellow graded material (notably some scenes where Campbell is having his own bouts of stand off's with the evil spirits) now have a kind of honeyed amber appearance. Which is interesting, and at least a little different from the 1080p Blu-ray accounting.

As for the audio, well we have: English: Dolby TrueHD 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit), and Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1.

Overall, this is a very strong 4K HDR Blu-ray presentation, and, for the most part, the audio track remains fairly similar to its DTS-HD counterpart; with much of the action occupying the surrounds with outstanding directionality and placement where effects flawlessly pan between the sides and rears.

Phew! OK, so, as for the movie itself, 'The Evil Dead,' it is inventive, startling, and always-packing energy within every single scene! Indeed, Sam Raimi's 'The Evil Dead' is a true testament to the power of talent over budget! It has became a beloved cult classic and stands as one of the most influential horror films of all time!

Five young adults go off to a mountain cabin, where they unknowingly unleash evil, possessive spirits that reek havoc upon everything!

'The Evil Dead' is' perhaps' the last of the great drive-in horror classics. Director Sam Raimi, who has since gone on to films with much bigger budgets, made his debut with this wildly terrifying genre masterpiece.

Raimi's crafty direction builds a thick atmosphere of dread and isolation through out the film, using the woodsy setting as a great back drop. He uses some nicely inventive camera shots. The movie does indeed play out like shocking roller-coaster ride, as the scenes of in-your-face horror and gore hit hard and fast, only to be followed by eerie lulls of tension.

It's the most effectively gripping style that any horror film could use! Raimi also makes the most out of using dark humor in the film, making even the most scary sequences strangely funny. The makeup FX are truly gruesome, even with a low-budget there are plenty of freakishly-good FX to drive the thrills.

Raimi also creates some nicely bizarre and memorable sequences, like the vine-rape scene with Cheryl, the demented singing of a possessed Linda, the 'bleeding' cellar pipes, and that grand finale with Ash having to make a stand to survive!

Not to mention the knock-out final shot of the film, which is probably the greatest closing image to any horror picture ever! Also worthy of mention is the great music score by Joe LoDuca. LoDuca's music is a perfect match to the film, building plenty of tension and playing off the shocks very well.

The cast is as good as one would expect from a B picture, but they do hold their own. Of course the real star of the show is square-jawed B movie hero Bruce Campbell. Bruce does an outstanding role, playing terror to a T, and enduring the physical hardships of a grueling low-budget film. He deserves his B movie king status!

'The Evil Dead' has gone on to become one of the biggest cult films of all time and it's not hard to see why either! It's an outstandingly awesome horror ride that should be taken by all horror film fans!

If they're anything like this horror fan, 'The Evil Dead' will quickly become a big favorite! Oh, and as if you didn't already know, it was followed by Raimi's comical 'Evil Dead II' (1987) and 'Army of Darkness' (1993).

Anyway, that's that, for the most part, so now let's concentrate on the 4K Ultra HD's special feature, an Audio commentary with Writer/Director Sam Raimi, Producer Robert Tapert, and star Bruce Campbell.

Well, as you might well have already guessed, this one supplement actually comes from the 1080p Blu-ray and so has been seen before, sadly. No other bonus features, which kinda sorta lets it down, as I'd loved to have seen some new interviews and more behind-the-scenes featurettes. But hey, that's just lil' ol' me!

Available for the First Time on 4K Ultra HD™ Combo Pack and including Dolby Vision™, this is a Widescreen Presentation (1.85:1) enhanced for 16x9 TVs via 1080p and comes with the aforementioned Special Feature of:

Audio Commentary with Writer/Director Sam Raimi, Producer Robert Tapert, and Star Bruce Campbell

Unboxing 'The Evil Dead' 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray!

Amazon Purchase Link

www.LGF.com





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